EPA officials say meeting announcement expected shortly

Federal representative meet with Broome County, Binghamton officials

Aug. 24, 2010

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BINGHAMTON -- An executive from a firm representing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency met Tuesday for more than a hour-and-a-half with Broome County and City of Binghamton officials, but an agreement has not yet been reached for the county to host a public meeting on the agency's multi-million-dollar hydraulic fracturing study.

Broome County Executive Barbara J. Fiala and Adam Saslow of Plexus Logistics International, the firm hired by an EPA contractor, said they expect an announcement on the meeting's location in the coming days.

Fiala said the county has been assured The Forum in Binghamton is the agency's preferred location, but stressed nothing is definite.

"It's about as certain as anything could be with this event," Fiala said.

Saslow, Plexus' vice president for sustainability programs, and Fiala were joined at the meeting by City of Binghamton administrators, Arena and Forum staff, and representatives from Broome Security, Binghamton police, the Broome Parks Department and the County Attorney's Office.

A venue could be chosen as soon as Wednesday morning, Saslow said, but the EPA is considering three locations, including one outside of the Southern Tier. When questioned further, Saslow would not say if Broome County was included in that number or if there were three additional venues, nor would he comment on which other locations were under consideration.

Cornell University has also been contacted about hosting the event, a university spokeswoman confirmed last week. Saslow toured The Forum and the Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena on Monday, and said he had no additional plans for face-to-face meetings with other venues Tuesday.

The meeting has been through a number of twists and turns. Originally scheduled for Aug. 12 at Binghamton University, it was moved to a conference center in Syracuse three days prior to the event after a contract dispute. One day later, the meeting was postponed after Onondaga County officials said they could not come up with an adequate security plan on such short notice.

Fiala said logistics and planning were discussed at Tuesday's meeting, but a price for renting the venue had not been discussed. She reiterated her concern that the EPA should pay security costs for the public meeting, which is expected to draw protesters.

"It is an EPA event and the local taxpayer should not bear the cost," she said. "I think what we've expressed to the organizers is that security will not be compromised."

The length of the meeting also was discussed. Originally, it was scheduled to consist of three, four-hour sessions on a single day, but Saslow said an additional session could be added and the meeting could cover two days. If that were the case, 100 additional speaking slots for the public would open up.

The EPA had originally zeroed in on Sept. 13 and Sept. 14 as possible dates, but now several mid-September options have been discussed, the county said.

The EPA's study will take a look at the relationship between groundwater and hydrofracking, a natural gas drilling technique in which a mix of water, sand and chemicals are blasted deep underground to break up rock and release natural gas.